Eating in Labor

This page is enhanced with social features that allow you to share content via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and G+. Those sharing features are governed by the terms and polices of those social platforms. Clicking Continue may share your personal data with these social media platforms without further action by you.

Elaine Zwelling, R.N., Ph.D., has been involved in maternal-newborn health care for 40 years. She has a bachelor's degree in nursing from Capital University and a master's degree in nursing and a Ph.D. in Family Relations and Human Development from Ohio State University. Dr. Zwelling brings to the Pampers Parenting Network her experience of helping expectant parents enjoy their pregnancy, plan and create a positive birth experience, and learn about parenting their newborn baby. She is certified by Lamaze International as a childbirth educator, is a Fellow in the American College of Childbirth Educators, and has taught childbirth classes for 25 years. Dr. Zwelling was the director and faculty for the Lamaze International Childbirth Educator Certification Program of Florida; in that role she prepared many nurses to become childbirth educators.

Dr. Zwelling was a Professor of Maternal-Newborn Nursing for 23 years at both Capital University and Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. At these institutions she taught undergraduate and graduate students and conducted research. For eight years she was a Senior Consultant with Phillips &; Fenwick, a women's health consulting firm in Santa Cruz, California, specializing in helping hospitals implement family-centered maternity care. Currently Dr. Zwelling is a Perinatal Nurse Consultant with the Hill-Rom Company. In this position, she provides comprehensive support and consultation to hospital maternity units to create quality care environments equipped with the appropriate equipment for labor and birth and provides clinical education for nursing staff.

Dr. Zwelling is the co-author of a maternal-newborn nursing textbook, Maternal-Newborn Nursing: Theory and Practice, and has published many professional journal articles related to maternal-newborn health care, family-centered maternity care, and childbirth education. Dr. Zwelling is a recognized speaker at professional conferences and teaches continuing education seminars for childbirth educators and perinatal nurses throughout the country.

Dr. Zwelling resides in Sarasota, Florida, and has a grown son, lovely daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren.

Can you eat while you're in labor? Yes, but only if you stick to certain foods.

Your grandmother was probably given much stricter advice: "Don't eat anything!" was the decree issued to laboring women in the 1940s and 1950s. The reason for such caution had to do with the large amounts of painkilling drugs given during labor and the general anesthesia used for birth. When women were heavily sedated or not conscious, they were unable to control their breathing and swallowing. If a woman ate just prior to labor, she ran the risk of vomiting and then aspirating the stomach contents into her lungs, which would cause her to choke.

Things are very different today. Doctors no longer give women such strong drugs for labor, and general anesthesia is seldom used during birth. Women are alert and responsive and have full control over their breathing and swallowing. Still, you will probably be advised to avoid most foods during labor, mainly because of the discomfort that can result. As labor progresses, some women experience nausea caused by their pain medication or by the mere intensity of labor; if their stomach is full, the nausea may lead to vomiting. While this isn't dangerous, it is an added discomfort to deal with.

Also, digestion stops during labor. Your blood flow is directed not to your stomach but to your uterus, where all the work is being done. As a result, foods you eat during labor, especially high-fat foods like meat and dairy products, simply sit in your stomach. This can be uncomfortable, and it increases your risk of vomiting if you do become nauseous.

Foods You Can Safely Eat During Early Labor

That said, you don't have to cut out everything. In fact, new research has shown that fasting can actually cause the existing stomach contents to be more dangerous if aspirated, because they are higher in acid. If you become hungry during early labor (you probably won't feel like eating anything when you're in active labor), you can safely snack on certain foods that contain no fat and are therefore quickly digested. The following are all good choices:

Clear beverages (apple juice, cranberry juice, tea, Sprite)

Clear soups, broth

Popsicles, ice chips

Toast (not buttered), saltine crackers, graham crackers

Plain pasta

If you think labor has started, resist any urge you might have to eat a big, heavy meal. The payoff for enduring hunger pangs is a more comfortable labor. So munch on the safe foods listed above, and celebrate with a pizza after the baby is born!

This page is enhanced with social features that allow you to share content via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and G+. Those sharing features are governed by the terms and polices of those social platforms. Clicking Continue may share your personal data with these social media platforms without further action by you.